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Iowa, Bat Season Underway (Health Dept., August 27 2012)
[Source: Iowa Department of Health, full page: (LINK). Edited.]
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Posted: Mon, 27 Aug 2012 09:19 CDT / Category: Infectious Disease Prevention
Bat Season Underway
As expected this time of year, the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) is receiving an increasing number of bat-related rabies calls. These calls usually peak in August and September. According to the Department of Natural Resources, these are the months when interactions between humans and bats typically increase because of bat migration and increased mobility and traveling of young bat pups.
So far in 2012, 11 rabid bats have been reported to IDPH. There have been no human rabies cases.
Rabies is a deadly virus spread to people from the saliva of infected animals, usually through an animal bite. The most common carriers of rabies in Iowa are bats and skunks, although many different species of animals can be infected with rabies.
?Rabies in humans is 100 percent preventable through prompt, appropriate medical care,? said IDPH Public Health Veterinarian, Dr. Ann Garvey. ?If you think you might have been exposed to rabies, you should clean the wound immediately and then contact your health care provider.?
Bat bites can be visibly undetectable and therefore, if you have any physical contact with a bat, you should wash the exposed area thoroughly with soap and water. If possible, the bat should be captured and tested for rabies. If capture is not possible, you should seek medical attention. Additionally, if a bat is found in the same room as an unattended child, a sleeping person, or anyone who cannot reliably communicate what happened, this is considered a potential bat exposure, and medical attention should be sought.
There is a common misconception that you cannot legally kill bats in homes. This is not true. If you encounter a bat in your home, you may kill it in order to have it tested for rabies. This will help determine if you need to get the rabies shots.
For more information about rabies, visit www.idph.state.ia.us/Cade/DiseaseIndex.aspx?disease=Rabies.
To see where rabies cases have been reported in Iowa, visit www.idph.state.ia.us/IDPHChannelsService/file.ashx?file=BAFE62E0-CF42-4D51-9FBD-AA4E4D286108.
Contact Information: Polly Carver-Kimm at (515) 281-6693
-Bat Season Underway
As expected this time of year, the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) is receiving an increasing number of bat-related rabies calls. These calls usually peak in August and September. According to the Department of Natural Resources, these are the months when interactions between humans and bats typically increase because of bat migration and increased mobility and traveling of young bat pups.
So far in 2012, 11 rabid bats have been reported to IDPH. There have been no human rabies cases.
Rabies is a deadly virus spread to people from the saliva of infected animals, usually through an animal bite. The most common carriers of rabies in Iowa are bats and skunks, although many different species of animals can be infected with rabies.
?Rabies in humans is 100 percent preventable through prompt, appropriate medical care,? said IDPH Public Health Veterinarian, Dr. Ann Garvey. ?If you think you might have been exposed to rabies, you should clean the wound immediately and then contact your health care provider.?
Bat bites can be visibly undetectable and therefore, if you have any physical contact with a bat, you should wash the exposed area thoroughly with soap and water. If possible, the bat should be captured and tested for rabies. If capture is not possible, you should seek medical attention. Additionally, if a bat is found in the same room as an unattended child, a sleeping person, or anyone who cannot reliably communicate what happened, this is considered a potential bat exposure, and medical attention should be sought.
There is a common misconception that you cannot legally kill bats in homes. This is not true. If you encounter a bat in your home, you may kill it in order to have it tested for rabies. This will help determine if you need to get the rabies shots.
For more information about rabies, visit www.idph.state.ia.us/Cade/DiseaseIndex.aspx?disease=Rabies.
To see where rabies cases have been reported in Iowa, visit www.idph.state.ia.us/IDPHChannelsService/file.ashx?file=BAFE62E0-CF42-4D51-9FBD-AA4E4D286108.
Contact Information: Polly Carver-Kimm at (515) 281-6693
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